ADVERTISEMENT

Cael Interview on BaschAMania

I like the fact that Cael has the mindset to think about both the best interest of the young men (and women) his staff coaches now, as well as the long term future viability of the sport.
 
** In the eternity it took me to write this post I see Lion8286 has started a thread, so I will just add all this to that thread.**

Like spotting the fabled unicorn, I see that Cael actually sat down and did a lengthy (50 minutes) interview on Baschamania. It was an excellent and very informative interview. It was a real pleasure to hear Cael speak at length. The same passion, pursuit of excellence, intelligence and methodical thinking/planning that he exhibited as a wrestler shines through in his coaching philosophy and outlook on life. He comes across as very cerebral, focused and detail oriented. For those who have the time, I highly recommend listening to the entire interview. Here are some highlights:

Cael's middle name is Norman :cool:

Regarding the cancellation of the season last year, Cael feels especially bad for those seniors like Cenzo and Mark who did not take an Olympic Redshirt last year (including those wrestlers who had a regular Redshirt available) in order to to help their team and because of that they are missing out on the free upcoming season. Cael was quite vocal in his disagreement with the NCAA regarding them not allowing seniors from last year to have the ability to compete this year.

Mark Hall is still at Penn State and is taking classes through the end of the semester.

Prior to the announcement of the free year the coaching staff was going to Redshirt everyone who had one available, whether Olympic or a regular Redshirt.

The coaches asked the B1G to move the B1G tournament from Penn State to a neutral site with the rationale being that it would be better to use a larger facility in case COVID rules limit capacity to 25%, etc. The B1G doesn't want to do it. Using the Bryce Jordan Center instead of Rec Hall might be an option. ** Disclaimer. Cael's audio during this portion of the interview wasn't great, so I may not have heard everything correctly. **

Regarding their move to Rokfin, they shopped around first, looking at Fight TV and Trackwrestling also. Cael even talked to Flowrestling. They ultimately feel Rokfin has a better model for them. Cael wanted to be able to have the events at home rather than having to travel to other sites, because it entailed a two week quarantine with every trip. Cael feels the Rokfin model has great potential to grow the sport. (I love how Cael is always trying to innovate and grow the sport!)

They are planning to have events on Rokfin in November and December, and possibly an event in January involving RTC athletes along with possibly wrestlers from other countries, COVID allowing.

Regarding the Rokfin model, Cael stated, "Every program can run their mini Flowrestling." (I swore I could hear the wailing in Austin when Cael said this!).

Cael contacted Bubba Jenkins directly to see if he would wrestle Jason. Cael joked that when he texted Bubba he told Bubba it was his best friend calling and if he was interested in talking about a potential match. Cael cracks me up.

Cael is looking forward to Carter Starocci's match. Cael said Starocci is as motivated as anyone he has ever coached.

Cael said Aaron Brooks has jumped levels, which is a scary thought. I can't wait to see the 1, 2 punch of Starocci and Brooks.

RBY has been training really hard and is very motivated.

Gilman and RBY have been training really hard together.

Gilman is getting married this weekend.

Cael goes into great detail that he is still not a fan of wrestlers engaging in a lot of social media. He feels it is a distraction with too great a potential for negative outcomes. His lack of media access to the room is part of his overall concept of being highly focused on getting the wrestlers to be the best they can be. "There is not a reason to have people in your room showing everyone what they are doing." It is obvious he would prefer his wrestlers let their wrestling speak for themselves, rather than boasting online, etc. This portion of the interview was very informative.

"Let's just win. Let's just make sure our kids are happy, make sure our kids are reaching their goals, make sure we are at our best at the national tournament, make sure we are at our best in the big moments, recruiting, all those other things, will take care of themselves. . . . Our best recruits . . . they recruited us as much as we recruited them."

PSU hasn't had a bad National tournament in ten years. The parents of recruits see the team and individual results, and the fact that the wrestlers get better as their careers progress. All these things are what parents want for their child and the successful track record of the program sells itself.

"The social media crap is just a distraction. . . . I don't really want to be on Twitter. I'm sure Satan's got a lot of ownership . . . . Everybody hates everybody. It doesn't matter. There's no love. There's no understanding. There's no love your enemy, forgive each other. It's the opposite of that."

It seems Cael is a Fornite fan.

They discuss the NCAA's Name, Image and Likeness proposal and what it might mean for college wrestlers. Cael said he is taking a wait and see approach as of now, but he does not foresee wrestlers making much money. Cael mentioned how few endorsement opportunities he had not only after going 159-0 but also after his Olympic gold.

Cael joked that maybe for future Rokfin events they could add flashing lights and a pinata!


Wow, that took way too much time and work! Hopefully you find the summary informative at least. I'm signing off now. Gaylon
 
** In the eternity it took me to write this post I see Lion8286 has started a thread, so I will just add all this to that thread.**

Like spotting the fabled unicorn, I see that Cael actually sat down and did a lengthy (50 minutes) interview on Baschamania. It was an excellent and very informative interview. It was a real pleasure to hear Cael speak at length. The same passion, pursuit of excellence, intelligence and methodical thinking/planning that he exhibited as a wrestler shines through in his coaching philosophy and outlook on life. He comes across as very cerebral, focused and detail oriented. For those who have the time, I highly recommend listening to the entire interview. Here are some highlights:

Cael's middle name is Norman :cool:

Regarding the cancellation of the season last year, Cael feels especially bad for those seniors like Cenzo and Mark who did not take an Olympic Redshirt last year (including those wrestlers who had a regular Redshirt available) in order to to help their team and because of that they are missing out on the free upcoming season. Cael was quite vocal in his disagreement with the NCAA regarding them not allowing seniors from last year to have the ability to compete this year.

Mark Hall is still at Penn State and is taking classes through the end of the semester.

Prior to the announcement of the free year the coaching staff was going to Redshirt everyone who had one available, whether Olympic or a regular Redshirt.

The coaches asked the B1G to move the B1G tournament from Penn State to a neutral site with the rationale being that it would be better to use a larger facility in case COVID rules limit capacity to 25%, etc. The B1G doesn't want to do it. Using the Bryce Jordan Center instead of Rec Hall might be an option. ** Disclaimer. Cael's audio during this portion of the interview wasn't great, so I may not have heard everything correctly. **

Regarding their move to Rokfin, they shopped around first, looking at Fight TV and Trackwrestling also. Cael even talked to Flowrestling. They ultimately feel Rokfin has a better model for them. Cael wanted to be able to have the events at home rather than having to travel to other sites, because it entailed a two week quarantine with every trip. Cael feels the Rokfin model has great potential to grow the sport. (I love how Cael is always trying to innovate and grow the sport!)

They are planning to have events on Rokfin in November and December, and possibly an event in January involving RTC athletes along with possibly wrestlers from other countries, COVID allowing.

Regarding the Rokfin model, Cael stated, "Every program can run their mini Flowrestling." (I swore I could hear the wailing in Austin when Cael said this!).

Cael contacted Bubba Jenkins directly to see if he would wrestle Jason. Cael joked that when he texted Bubba he told Bubba it was his best friend calling and if he was interested in talking about a potential match. Cael cracks me up.

Cael is looking forward to Carter Starocci's match. Cael said Starocci is as motivated as anyone he has ever coached.

Cael said Aaron Brooks has jumped levels, which is a scary thought. I can't wait to see the 1, 2 punch of Starocci and Brooks.

RBY has been training really hard and is very motivated.

Gilman and RBY have been training really hard together.

Gilman is getting married this weekend.

Cael goes into great detail that he is still not a fan of wrestlers engaging in a lot of social media. He feels it is a distraction with too great a potential for negative outcomes. His lack of media access to the room is part of his overall concept of being highly focused on getting the wrestlers to be the best they can be. "There is not a reason to have people in your room showing everyone what they are doing." It is obvious he would prefer his wrestlers let their wrestling speak for themselves, rather than boasting online, etc. This portion of the interview was very informative.

"Let's just win. Let's just make sure our kids are happy, make sure our kids are reaching their goals, make sure we are at our best at the national tournament, make sure we are at our best in the big moments, recruiting, all those other things, will take care of themselves. . . . Our best recruits . . . they recruited us as much as we recruited them."

PSU hasn't had a bad National tournament in ten years. The parents of recruits see the team and individual results, and the fact that the wrestlers get better as their careers progress. All these things are what parents want for their child and the successful track record of the program sells itself.

"The social media crap is just a distraction. . . . I don't really want to be on Twitter. I'm sure Satan's got a lot of ownership . . . . Everybody hates everybody. It doesn't matter. There's no love. There's no understanding. There's no love your enemy, forgive each other. It's the opposite of that."

It seems Cael is a Fornite fan.

They discuss the NCAA's Name, Image and Likeness proposal and what it might mean for college wrestlers. Cael said he is taking a wait and see approach as of now, but he does not foresee wrestlers making much money. Cael mentioned how few endorsement opportunities he had not only after going 159-0 but also after his Olympic gold.

Cael joked that maybe for future Rokfin events they could add flashing lights and a pinata!


Wow, that took way too much time and work! Hopefully you find the summary informative at least. I'm signing off now. Gaylon
That was awesome. I'll try to listen over the weekend, but if I can't, I feel like I have a pretty good feel for everything that was covered. Thanks!
 
That was awesome. I'll try to listen over the weekend, but if I can't, I feel like I have a pretty good feel for everything that was covered. Thanks!
I thought you had all the time in the world lounging in your recliner???
giphy.gif
 
** In the eternity it took me to write this post I see Lion8286 has started a thread, so I will just add all this to that thread.**

Like spotting the fabled unicorn, I see that Cael actually sat down and did a lengthy (50 minutes) interview on Baschamania. It was an excellent and very informative interview. It was a real pleasure to hear Cael speak at length. The same passion, pursuit of excellence, intelligence and methodical thinking/planning that he exhibited as a wrestler shines through in his coaching philosophy and outlook on life. He comes across as very cerebral, focused and detail oriented. For those who have the time, I highly recommend listening to the entire interview. Here are some highlights:

Cael's middle name is Norman :cool:

Regarding the cancellation of the season last year, Cael feels especially bad for those seniors like Cenzo and Mark who did not take an Olympic Redshirt last year (including those wrestlers who had a regular Redshirt available) in order to to help their team and because of that they are missing out on the free upcoming season. Cael was quite vocal in his disagreement with the NCAA regarding them not allowing seniors from last year to have the ability to compete this year.

Mark Hall is still at Penn State and is taking classes through the end of the semester.

Prior to the announcement of the free year the coaching staff was going to Redshirt everyone who had one available, whether Olympic or a regular Redshirt.

The coaches asked the B1G to move the B1G tournament from Penn State to a neutral site with the rationale being that it would be better to use a larger facility in case COVID rules limit capacity to 25%, etc. The B1G doesn't want to do it. Using the Bryce Jordan Center instead of Rec Hall might be an option. ** Disclaimer. Cael's audio during this portion of the interview wasn't great, so I may not have heard everything correctly. **

Regarding their move to Rokfin, they shopped around first, looking at Fight TV and Trackwrestling also. Cael even talked to Flowrestling. They ultimately feel Rokfin has a better model for them. Cael wanted to be able to have the events at home rather than having to travel to other sites, because it entailed a two week quarantine with every trip. Cael feels the Rokfin model has great potential to grow the sport. (I love how Cael is always trying to innovate and grow the sport!)

They are planning to have events on Rokfin in November and December, and possibly an event in January involving RTC athletes along with possibly wrestlers from other countries, COVID allowing.

Regarding the Rokfin model, Cael stated, "Every program can run their mini Flowrestling." (I swore I could hear the wailing in Austin when Cael said this!).

Cael contacted Bubba Jenkins directly to see if he would wrestle Jason. Cael joked that when he texted Bubba he told Bubba it was his best friend calling and if he was interested in talking about a potential match. Cael cracks me up.

Cael is looking forward to Carter Starocci's match. Cael said Starocci is as motivated as anyone he has ever coached.

Cael said Aaron Brooks has jumped levels, which is a scary thought. I can't wait to see the 1, 2 punch of Starocci and Brooks.

RBY has been training really hard and is very motivated.

Gilman and RBY have been training really hard together.

Gilman is getting married this weekend.

Cael goes into great detail that he is still not a fan of wrestlers engaging in a lot of social media. He feels it is a distraction with too great a potential for negative outcomes. His lack of media access to the room is part of his overall concept of being highly focused on getting the wrestlers to be the best they can be. "There is not a reason to have people in your room showing everyone what they are doing." It is obvious he would prefer his wrestlers let their wrestling speak for themselves, rather than boasting online, etc. This portion of the interview was very informative.

"Let's just win. Let's just make sure our kids are happy, make sure our kids are reaching their goals, make sure we are at our best at the national tournament, make sure we are at our best in the big moments, recruiting, all those other things, will take care of themselves. . . . Our best recruits . . . they recruited us as much as we recruited them."

PSU hasn't had a bad National tournament in ten years. The parents of recruits see the team and individual results, and the fact that the wrestlers get better as their careers progress. All these things are what parents want for their child and the successful track record of the program sells itself.

"The social media crap is just a distraction. . . . I don't really want to be on Twitter. I'm sure Satan's got a lot of ownership . . . . Everybody hates everybody. It doesn't matter. There's no love. There's no understanding. There's no love your enemy, forgive each other. It's the opposite of that."

It seems Cael is a Fornite fan.

They discuss the NCAA's Name, Image and Likeness proposal and what it might mean for college wrestlers. Cael said he is taking a wait and see approach as of now, but he does not foresee wrestlers making much money. Cael mentioned how few endorsement opportunities he had not only after going 159-0 but also after his Olympic gold.

Cael joked that maybe for future Rokfin events they could add flashing lights and a pinata!


Wow, that took way too much time and work! Hopefully you find the summary informative at least. I'm signing off now. Gaylon

Awesome write up, bravo!

I also listened to the whole interview and I will second that the interview is very informative and worth listening to. One other comment Cael made, when talking about the free year. He said it should be a great year because everyone should have their best wrestlers going.
 
I thought you had all the time in the world lounging in your recliner???
giphy.gif
Awesome write up, bravo!

I also listened to the whole interview and I will second that the interview is very informative and worth listening to. One other comment Cael made, when talking about the free year. He said it should be a great year because everyone should have their best wrestlers going.
I will be honest, I was disappointed when I heard that Penn State might be Redshirting everyone this year. This upcoming season should be filled with some awesome matches and I can't wait!
 
  • Like
Reactions: Ja1339
I’ll say it - It’s extremely refreshing having Cael and several of his wrestlers participating in online interviews and posting on Social Media. The in season Radio Show is ok (JB lobs a lot of softballs and toes the company line) but this is better.
 
Great interview.

anyone else listen to the discussion about the Rokfin events and content and wish Basch had suggested “you know, Cael, you would probably still be the biggest draw if you hit the mat vs .... any chance of that happening?“.
 
ADVERTISEMENT